Our time in Venice started out rocky because our bags did not make our connecting flight. This was disappointing and our experience at the airport was not great. We had to wait about 2 hours to speak to someone about our missing luggage because there were at least 50 other people who had missing luggage from earlier flights. Afterwards, we learned that this happens frequently when connecting to Venice, so make sure to book a connecting flight that has some wiggle room! Our bags came the next day and we made the best of it. At least we got to buy some clothes in Venice!
Once we got through our luggage mess at the airport, we got on a bus which brought us to the Vaporetto (boat shuttle) stop and from there, we took a 10 minute boat ride to get to the stop near our hotel. We walked about 5 minutes and admired every minute of our walk. Venice wasn’t so bad after all – especially since we didn’t have to roll our suitcases to our hotel!
Venice was a city that we definitely wanted to see on our first visit to Italy. It is mostly known for it’s narrow alleys, canals and bridges everywhere because it has no vehicular roads. It was built on over 100 small islands in the lagoon of the Adriatic Sea. We were warned about the smell as well as the rain in the month of July. We had no issues whatsoever and both felt like we would travel back to Venice during this time of year. Everywhere we walked was so beautiful and picturesque. Venice is truly the most romantic city we have ever been to!
Where We Stayed:
We stayed at Hotel Giorgione which was a perfect location away from the main tourist attractions, but close enough to walk and see all that Venice has to offer. The Cannaregio neighborhood where the hotel is located was much quieter and we got to experience more of the culture in this part of Venice. Many locals would go out to eat in this neighborhood, so of course, this is where we dined most of the time! The hotel was beautifully decorated with Murano glass pieces on display. The hotel courtyard had a small pool-jacuzzi to go into which we utilized one afternoon. The staff was friendly, welcoming & helpful with our missing luggage situation. They pointed out areas that we could get necessities as well as some clothes until our bags arrived. There were many shops, restaurants, and gelato places nearby for us to explore and hopping on the closest Vaporetto was within 5 minutes walking distance.
Adventures:
Sight Seeing
We enjoyed walking around Venice and seeing all of the popular sights to see in and around St. Marks Square, about a 20 minute walk from our hotel. First, we stopped by the Rialto Bridge to take pictures and walk over it to get to the main square. The area was quite crowded with many, many tourists. After that, we went to see the Bridge of Sighs. The bridge is made out of limestone and is enclosed over the Rio di Palazzo. As soon as we got to Piazza San Marco, we got on line to go into St. Mark’s Basilica. It was a beautiful church, with fantastic architecture and rich with history. We also enjoyed seeing the St. Marks Clock Tower. There were many restaurants and shops to go into around this area. Eating outside on St. Marks Square itself had a cover charge for the location. We found several options right outside of the square to sit and relax at without having the pay the additional fee.
Although we loved seeing all of the famous spots in Venice, our favorite part of sightseeing was walking around and “getting lost” through the alleyways. We felt like this was the best way to experience such a unique city. We crossed bridges, walked down the narrow alleys, and relaxed by some quiet canals. Our favorite spot truly was the Cannaregio neighborhood because of it’s distance away from the hustle and bustle. We felt like we got to experience all that Venice has to offer by staying in this area, being able to explore it both day and night. Here, we came across a famous bridge, Ponte de Chiodo. This is the only bridge in Venice with no sides. If you try to cross this bridge, there is a dead end, because it leads to someone’s front door.
Murano & Burano
*Tip: In order to get around Venice easily and travel to Murano & Burano, we suggest that you look into getting a Vaporetto day pass. We got ours for 3 days since that was how long our time in Venice was. It helped us explore the city to the fullest.
We utilized our Vaporetto pass and went on a day trip to a few of the islands near Venice- Murano & Burano. Murano is known for it’s unique glass making. There were many shops selling the beautiful glass art that is made there. Many of the restaurants and hotels in Venice showcase it as well. Next, we went to Burano. This island is known for it’s brightly colored fisherman’s houses and restaurants on the lagoon. We didn’t think that it would be as crowded as it was, so we didn’t make lunch reservations. It turned out that many of the places were either not open that day or booked. Make sure to look for a place in advance if you have something specific in mind! Either way, we found a cute cafe right near the water to grab a bite to eat. These islands were so bright & colorful – simply beautiful.
Gondola Ride
Is the gondola ride worth it in Venice? We had to try it for ourselves in order to accurately answer this question! We had a fantastic experience – our gondolier sang, taught us about the history of Venice, and gave us a nice tour through the quieter parts of the canal. You get a more intimate experience if you avoid the gondoliers on the main canal, but you have to find them down the alleyways. We were bummed when it started to rain on us, but the gondolier parked us underneath a bridge until the storm passed. In the end, we were lucky because we were able to capture amazing pictures of the sky & sunset. It was quite romantic and an experience we will never forget!
Culture & Food:
Each restaurant that we ate dinner at was within 10 minutes walking distance from our hotel – we loved the area so much, we didn’t want to go elsewhere to eat! We would recommend that you make reservations at these restaurants. Even though most restaurants are not in the touristy area, many hotels recommend their guests come to Cannaregio to eat.
Ai Promessi Sposi was a 5 minute walk from our hotel. It was our first meal in Venice (and Italy) and did not disappoint! The menu was not in English, so we needed the waitress to translate for us. We quickly learned some important words in Italian which helped us for the rest of our trip! The pasta was so fresh and cooked to perfection. Miro had the fish and he was happy with how his meal came out. The staff was friendly and welcoming, even considering the fact that we weren’t eating dinner until 9:00pm (because of our luggage mess at the airport). The prices were reasonable and this was one of our favorite meals in Venice.
Steps away from our hotel was our favorite spot for lunch! It was a wine bar & cafe, El Sbarlefo, that served small sandwiches, perfect for lunch time or an afternoon snack. It was affordable $, relaxing and tasty.
After walking around the neighborhood of our hotel, we came across a beautifully located restaurant, Algiubagio, which was about a 10 minute walk from our hotel. We decided to make reservations here for the following day for our final meal in Venice. The view of the water and the sunset during our meal was so relaxing. Everything was delicious – from our appetizer, entrees, dessert and wine. The prices were a bit more than average $$$, but worth it and reasonable for the quality of food we got. Here, we had our best tiramisu in Italy!
Thirsty or hungry mid-day? Get an aperol spritz to cool down at Bacaro Risorto. The prices for drinks were much cheaper $ here than bars or restaurants right in St. Marks Square. This little cafe is right outside of the square and is a great place to take a break. Also, they served food and had small sandwiches which were easy to grab and go. Great find!
We had a favorite gelato place near our hotel, Gelato di Natura. We went there every single day. They had a wide variety of flavors to try. After our entire time in Italy, we still came to the conclusion that this was the best gelato place we tried throughout our whole trip!
Read about our next stop through Italy, Florence!